Ingredients
1 very large onion (or two medium ones), chopped
¼ cup olive oil or more if needed
2 large carrots, diced
2 large stalks celery, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 (14.5-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 cups uncooked lentils
8 cups water (or 1 quart water and 1 quart low-salt
chicken broth)
½ cup spinach, rinsed and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons vinegar or more to taste
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Directions
1. In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, and celery and stir until onion is tender. Stir in garlic, bay leaf, oregano, and basil. Cook for 2 minutes.
2. Stir in lentils and add water and tomatoes and kielbasa. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for at least 1 hour. When ready to serve stir in spinach and cook until it wilts. Add vinegar and season to taste with salt and pepper and more vinegar if desired.
This is another variation on lentil soup. Made with coconut milk and lots of ginger, it’s my new favorite.
Ingredients
1 large onion
6 cloves garlic
1 4-inch piece of ginger, peeled
2 tablespoons virgin coconut oil, more if needed
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
1 13.5-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup red lentils (you can use whatever kind you want
but the cooking time might be longer)
5 cups water, vegetable broth, or chicken broth, or any
combination
1 bunch fresh spinach, rinsed and sliced fine
1 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
½ cup shredded coconut
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Directions
1. Chop onion and dice garlic and ginger. Heat coconut oil in Dutch oven, add onion, and cook, stirring, until translucent, 6 to 8 minutes.
2. Add ginger and garlic, and continue stirring until the garlic turns golden. Add cayenne pepper and stir. Add coconut milk; lentils; shredded coconut; 2 teaspoons salt; and five cups of water, vegetable broth, or chicken broth, or any combination thereof. Bring to a boil. Then lower heat and allow to simmer for half an hour or until the lentils are soft.
3. Add tomatoes, spinach, and salt and black pepper to taste; reheat; and serve. This soup also reheats well. For variation, you can substitute a half cup of fresh basil for the spinach.
At the conclusion of the Jewish High Holy Days, which mark the beginning of the Jewish New Year, it’s traditional to serve apples and honey or honey cake at the celebratory meal to make sure that the new year is sweet. Here is a recipe for a steamed honey cake from my friend Sarah Saulson, who is an excellent cook and baker. She has adapted it from Gil Marks’s “Lekach” from his The World of Jewish Cooking.
Ingredients
4 eggs
¼ cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoons cardamom
1 cup honey
¼ cup canola oil
2 tablespoons coffee
1 teaspoon vanilla
Optional: ½ cup chopped walnuts
Directions
1. Generously grease a 2-quart steaming mold.
2. Beat together eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and cardamom. In another separate bowl combine oil, honey, coffee, and vanilla. Add wet and dry ingredients to egg mixture alternately, mixing well after each addition. Stir in walnuts if using.
3. Spoon batter into steaming mold. Place a canning ring or canning jar ring in base of a large pot. Put mold on ring. Fill pot with water up to half the height of mold. Place a lid on large pot. Bring water to a simmer and simmer for 2½ hours. Remove from water. Place mold on cooling rack and remove top. Unmold once cool. Note: Our favorite way to eat this is toasted with butter.